Category: Great Ayton
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It took me a while to realise that something was missing from this pastoral scene
Normally the tranquility would have been broken by the hissing of the resident flock of geese irritated by my presence here at Aireyholme Farm. But today there was silence. And back home, it came to me: the geese are under lock down, housed indoors by order of DEFRA to prevent the spread of the avian…
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An early start
It was dry when I left home but by Gribdale Gate, the wind had picked up and it was beginning to spit, and any thoughts of photography had been forgotten. Still, it was pleasant to see Gribdale empty of cars; apart from two early dog walkers. It’s has always been a popular car park as…
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“The autumn rain-rot deeper and wider soaks”
This autumnal carpet of dead leaves caught my eyes. The Scots have a word for a “circle of rotted dead leaves round the foot of a tree”: “Rain-rot”. Not to be confused with the modern useage for an equine skin disease. The word seems to have been a favourite of the Victorian English poet William…
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Ayton Weir
The cataractic centrepiece of ‘Waterfall Park‘ off the High Street in Great Ayton. The weir served two mills: Ayton Mill, situated south of the ‘Buck Inn’, and Low Mill, well downstream of Low Green, shared by a common race which can still be traced today. Both these mills have existed since medieval times but in…
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Jennet o’ t’ Dales
I wanted to post an image of Chapel Well, a holy well near Great Ayton to accompany another story by Richard Blakeborough. Chapel Well is today a small hollow in a small patch of brambly wood called, not surprisingly, Chapel Wood. There is not much sign of any water — I suppose the hydrology has…
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Aireyholme Farm, Cliff Rigg and Great Ayton village
Wednesday, the 26th of September, 1917. William Arthur Trembath opens his eyes and blinks as they adjust to the hazy morning sun. It’s silent yet he is vaguely aware all around him is a frenzy of activity. The Battalion is consolidating their newly gained positions, connecting and deepening shell holes to form new trenches. He…
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The British School
It’s rare to find a view in the village without parked cars. This is Great Ayton’s Discovery Centre, a community run library set up in 2013 if I recall, after the North Yorkshire County Council threatened the existing library with closure. The Union flag is at half-mast in respect of HM Queen Elizabeth II. The…
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Devensian musings
I have mentioned many times of the great Devensian ice sheet which flowed over the Pennines at the Stainmore Gap, spilling out into what would become the Vale of Cleveland. And it is also common knowledge that the glacier did not flow over North York Moors, which became an island in a sea of ice,…
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A rare view of a traffic-free High Street in Great Ayton
The council’s hard at work tidying up the pot-holes, pending the arrival of the Tour of Britain cycle race a week on Wednesday (7th September). The typical Victorian-looking ediface on the left is the village hall. It started out life as a Wesleyan Methodist chapel in 1862 and was given to the village by Sir…
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I’ve finally managed to snap a photo of this graceful bird
Small and elegant with its brilliant white plumage, this attractive bird has been hanging around the village for several years with reports in Guisborough and Stokesley — but is the same bird? My RSPB 2002 book says Little egrets (Egretta garzetta) are resident in southern Britain and move south for the winter — is this…